| Overall Rating | Silver - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 47.17 |
| Liaison | David Fisher |
| Submission Date | April 11, 2014 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
Maharishi University of Management
ER-1: Student Sustainability Educators Program
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
5.00 / 5.00 |
Leanne
Hays Administrator Sustainable Living |
Total number of degree-seeking students enrolled at the institution:
Program name (1st program):
Number of students served by the program to whom peer-to-peer sustainability outreach and education is offered (1st program):
A brief description of the program, including examples of peer-to-peer outreach activities (1st program):
Mission
Our aim is to explore sustainability through serving, connecting and inspiring the Community of Fairfield.
Company Overview
EcoFairfield is hoping to become the town's new beloved tradition. Our aim is to explore sustainability through serving, connecting and inspiring the community of Fairfield.
We value compassion, vision, strategy, integration, fun, and inspiration. If this resonates with you or the values of your organization don't hesitate to contact us as we would love to collaborate with you!
Description
The tradition of EcoFair began with a student-driven desire to educate and inspire people about sustainability, self-sufficiency, and integrated ecological design. Events include lectures, workshops, films, booths, live music, and an eco-fashion show. This year Ecofair has evolved into EcoFairfield in hopes of better integrating the community at large.
A brief description of how the student educators are selected (1st program):
Volunteer based participation.
A brief description of the formal training that the student educators receive (1st program):
Training comes from previous courses attended, researched knowledge and faculty mentors.
A brief description of the staff and/or other financial support the institution provides to the program (1st program):
Students are provided with university funded facilities and materials. Faculty assist where requested and needed.
The website URL for 1st Program:
Program name (2nd program):
Number of students to whom peer-to-peer sustainability outreach and education is offered (2nd program):
A brief description of the program, including examples of peer-to-peer outreach activities (2nd program):
Students Install Renewable Energy in Remote Alaskan Village
Several current and former students, and Sustainable Living faculty member Lonnie Gamble spent a month in a small village on Admiralty Island in Alaska installing sustainable energy technology as part of a project to help indigenous Alaskans deal with the crushing energy costs.
Students Design, Build Industrial Can Crusher
Their goal was to make a can crusher that would work without electricity. The result: a human-powered press that flattens a can in eight seconds. Total cost? About $500.
Permaculture Students Plant Edible Forest on Campus
It’s intended to be a display of self-sustainability based on contemporary permaculture principles — the design of productive habitats for people that have the stability, diversity, and resilience of natural ecosystems.
Students Build Low-Cost Solar Tube/Skylight
Students built a solar tube — a project initiated during a course in high-performance green building.
Students Help Build Greenhouse
Sustainable Living students enrolled on the University’s track in sustainable agriculture participated in the construction of a 35-by-96-foot greenhouse, a "barn-raising" event organized by the nonprofit organization Practical Farmers of Iowa.
Students Learn Beekeeping, Build Bee Hives
In a first-of-its-kind course at MUM on natural beekeeping, students learned the foundations of biodynamic beekeeping from a visiting top expert, Gunther Hauk of Spikenard Farm in Illinois.
Student Projects: “Living Machine,” Wood-Fired Oven
Sustainable Living students created a range of Earth-friendly projects, including a "living machine," a brick oven capable of making 20-30 loaves of bread at a time, a solar collector, a website that monitors the energy performance of their classrooms, and a solar hot water heater.
Student-built wind generator provides power to classroom
A wind generator built by students capable of producing up to 2,000 watts of power is helping to provide power to the Sustainable Living department.
Students have big plans for biodiesel processor
Students in the Sustainable Living Program completed construction of a biodiesel processor capable of producing up to 500 gallons of fuel a day and are now hoping to use the fuel it makes to power University vehicles and to eventually set up a co-op to make fuel available to the community.
Student Garden Offers Field Experience
The project, called the “student garden,” is designed as a large circle composed of many growing beds (3’ by 12’ each) where students grow a diversity of organic vegetables, culinary herbs, soft fruits (berries), and flowers, as well as fiber crops, various medicinal plants, and more.
Students create renewable energy projects
In the context of doing these projects, students consulted with and learned from some skilled craftsman in town. They learned to weld and to do blacksmithing, plumbing, and electrical work. They also learned basic woodworking skills and visited an Amish sawmill, using the lumber in their projects.
Students Retrofit Wing with Green Technologies
Students completed a six-month project to renovate the Sustainable Living wing in order to provide more workshop space, to create an attractive environment, and to retrofit it with green technologies such as motion sensors, skylights, sun tubes, and high-performance fixtures.
Students Advise Fairfield on Use of Alternative Energy
The City of Fairfield created a commission to plan a strategy to save money via alternative energy, thanks to a research project by students in a course on management and the environment.
A brief description of how the student educators are selected (2nd program):
Volunteer based.
A brief description of the formal training that the student educators receive (2nd program):
Training comes from previous courses attended, researched knowledge and faculty mentors.
A brief description of the staff and/or other financial support the institution provides to the program (2nd program):
Students are provided with university funded facilities and materials. Faculty assist where requested and needed.
The website URL for 2nd program:
Program name (3rd program):
Number of students to whom peer-to-peer sustainability outreach and education is offered (3rd program):
A brief description of the program, including examples of peer-to-peer outreach activities (3rd program):
A brief description of how the student educators are selected (3rd program):
A brief description of the formal training that the student educators receive (3rd program):
A brief description of the staff and/or other financial support the institution provides to the program (3rd program):
The website URL for 3rd program:
Program name (All other programs):
Number of students to whom peer-to-peer sustainability outreach and education is offered (All other programs):
A brief description of the program, including examples of peer-to-peer outreach activities (All other programs):
A brief description of how the student educators are selected (All other programs):
A brief description of the formal training that the student educators receive (All other programs):
A brief description of the staff and/or other financial support the institution provides to the program (All other programs):
The website URL for all other programs:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
March 9, 2012: We questioned Diana Krystofiak, Visiting Faculty Coordinator of Sustainable Living. She knew some information and gave us contacts for information not known.
March 9, 2012: We questioned Diana Krystofiak, Visiting Faculty Coordinator of Sustainable Living. She knew some information and gave us contacts for information not known.
The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.